Poultry-feeder.



F. EUKER.

POULTRY FEEDER.

APPLICATION FILED wav. 18. 1916.

1,214,145. Patented Jan. 30,1917.

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FREDERICK EUKER, OF NORTH BRANCH, NEW YORK.

POULTRY-FEEDER.

Application filed November 18, 1916.

To all LU/wm t may concern:

Be it known that I, FREDERICK EUKER, a citizen of the United States, residing at North Branch, in the county of Sullivan and State of New York, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Poultry- Feeders, of which the following is a specification.

My invention relates to automatic feeding devices for fowls.

My principal object is to provide a device of this character which will hold a considerable quantity of feed safely housed and .protected so that it cannot be wasted, and yet with a small portion thereof always exposed in reach of the fowls where they can get it whenever they want it.

Another object is to accomplish the end sought by means which will cause the fowls themselves to operate the device and cause it to continue delivering feed to them as long as they make an effort to obtain the same; but will at once cease to deliver feed as soon as the fowls leave it.

Still another object is to provide a device of this character, so constructed that the automatic feeding arrangement in the feed receptacle will normally be collapsed and take up no appreciable room in the receptacle.

. Other objects will appear in the subioined description.

A leading feature of the device is a hollow pyramid or cone located at the bottom of the feed receptacle near delivery outlets therein and formed of any flexible material, such, for instance, as cloth, rubber, leather, or the like;V and adapted through suitable means, to be expanded to its full size by the fowls themselves in their efforts to obtain feed, and to collapse at other times.

The invention consists in certain novel features of construction and arrangement of parts, as will be hereinafter described and claimed, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, in which,-

Figure 1 is a side elevation of the device with one of the walls partly broken away to more clearly disclose the internal construction. Fig. 2 is a top plan view of the operating'treadle. Fig. 3 is a perspective view on a reduced scale, of the device complete. F ig. et is a broken elevation showing the lower portion of the feed receptacle with one side removed and another side partly in Speccation of Letters Patent.

Patented Jan. 30, 191'?.

Serial No. 132,036.

section; and showing the flexible feed device in its collapsed condition; and F ig. is a. similar view showing the flexible feed device or pyramid in its expanded conditlon.

The numeral 1 indicates the outer box or feed trough, and 2, the inner box or feed receptacle. The outer box 1 is provided between its upper' and lower sides with a bottom 3. The feed box 2 is secured to the bottom, preferably central thereof, so that the central portion of the bottom 3-of the outer box also forms a bottom for the inner box. On its fourl sides at its bottom the inner box 2 has the cut-away portions a, for the escape of feed therefrom into the feedtrough 1.

The vertical feed bar 5 is located central of the feed box 2, and is provided with a reduced portion 5a at its lower end, and a similar reduced portion 5b at its upper end. The lower reduced portion 5a is loosely received into an opening 6 in the bottom 3; and the upper reduced portion 5b is loosely received into an opening 7 in the bracket 8; which bracket with its opening is provided as a support and guideway for the upper end of the vertical feed bar 5, the openings 6 and 7 being in vertical alinement with each other.

Special attention is now called to a very important feature of my invention, namely, the collapsible feed cone or pyramid A. This part is formed of flexible, yielding material such as cloth, rubber, leather, or the like, and is located at the bottom of the feed receptacle. It is small at the top and is fastened securely around the vertical feed bar 5 with screws or tacks 9; While at its bottom it is large enough to cover a very considerable portion of the bottom of the feed box 2, and is secured around its lower edge to said bottom by screws or tacks 10. Underneath the bottom 3 is the rotatable treadle bar 1l, having reduced ends 11a mounted in the openings 12 in opposite sides of the feed trough or outer box 1, and near the front side of said box. Mounted on this treadle bar 11 and extending at right angles thereto is the treadle 13 having the openings 14 for securing the same to said bar to rock thereupon. The inner end of the treadle 18 lies just under the lower projecting end 5a of the vertical feed bar 5, and is provided at that end with a counterweight 13", which causes that end of the treadle to normally drop out of engagement with the vertical feed bar.

The feed trough or outer box 1, is provided on its sides with curved cut-away portions 15, and the treadle 13 projects out through one of these cut-away portions and is spread at its outer end 1da to greatly increase its area, to form said end into a sort of platform at that side of the feed trough.

The top of the feed receptacle 2 is provided with .a suitable lid 16 and upon the top of this lid is a block 17 tapering to an edge at its upper end. The'device is also provided with the brace wires or rods 18 which extend upwardly from the corners of the feed trough to the corners of the feed receptacle, and connect the two together at a point above the bottom 3.

The angle or bracket 8 is secured to either wall of the feed receptacle by the screws 19, but if desired may be substituted by a simple bar extending across the box from one side to the other and secured at its ends in any suitable manner, being provided of course in its center with a suitable opening for the reduced upper end 5" of the vertical feed bar. 1

The feed trough 1 is provided around its upper edge with the inwardly extending flange 20. It is obvious that there may be more than one treadle 13 if desired.

The operation of the device is extremely simple. The lid 16 is removed and the feed is poured into the box 2 at the top. The treadle 13 being now in its normal position as illustrated in Fig. 1, the vertical feed bar 5 is in its lowest position, and the flexible feed cone or pyramid carried thereby is in its collapsed condition as more clearly illustrated in Fig. Ll, so that the space it now occupies in the receptacle is a negligible quantity. A little of the feed will pass out through the openings et of the feed receptacle 2 into the feed trough 1, and this will soon attract any fowls that have access to the device; and as they stand around the box eating, some of them are sure to step on the broad outer end 13a of the treadle which will be thereby depressed and will operate to elevate the vertical feed bar 5 and the flexible pyramid A, which will expand the pyramid as illustrated in Fig. 5 of the drawings. rlhe pyramid being surrounded on all sides by the feed, its expansion will of course force more grain out through the openings 4: into the feed trough. When the fowls step off the platform 13a the flexible pyramid will again collapse, and the feed in the receptacle will drop down with it filling the space which the pyramid had occupied while expanded. This operation will be repeated everytime the treadle is depressed and released by a fowl first stepping onto and then off it.

Stating the matter in a general way, it may be said that the feed receptacle has a movable bottom operated by the chickens or other fowls feeding around the device, and that the movements of the bottom operate to work feed out through the delivery outlets of the receptacle where the fowls can get it.

Attention is called to the fact that when a fowl steps onto the platform 13a at the outer end of the treadle. the platform does not immediatelyrdrop down, or even appreciably drop at first, which would tend to make fowls shy of stepping onto it, but the grain or other feed in the box 2 will yield very gradually, and in many cases almost imperceptibly, so that the downward movement of the treadle will not be noticed by the fowl stepping onto it, and the gradual expansion of the pyramid will cause the grain to be worked out slowly and continuously for a considerable period of time after a fowl has stepped upon the treadle. Hence it is not necessary that the fowls should be continuously stepping ontoand off the platform in order to make the device work successfully. The height of the box may be so arranged that it is more or less inconvenient for the fowl to get at the feed without getting onto the platform. The inwardly extending ledge around the top of the feed trough prevents grain from flying out when the chickens are eating, or even if a small chicken should get into the trough and scratch among the grain. as chickens like to do. The brace wires 18 keep the chickens from getting up on the corners of the feed trough to eat, and the block 17 keeps them from perching on top of the box 2. When the vertical operating bar L5 is elevated, the flexible feeding pyramid is enlarged just as it would be if it were inflated; and when said bar drops down again to its normal position, the flexible feeding device is practically deflated.

Having thus described my invention and shown means for making a practical application of the principles embraced therein, I yet do not wish to be limited to the exact showing made, but desire protection on all that comes clearly within the spirit and scope of my invention.

What I claim as new and desire to procure protection upon is 1. In a device of the character described, a feed receptacle having delivery outlets for the feed; a bottom movable relatively to said outlets for working the feed out through the same, said bottom being movable by gravity to the downward position; and means for moving said bottom upwardly from the outside of the receptacle.

2. In a device of the character described, a feed receptacle provided with outlets for the escape of feed therefrom; a hollow feeding device located Within said receptacle and means for alternately moving the walls of said feeding device in opposite directions therein.

3. In a device of the character described, a feed receptacle provided with outlets for the escape of feed therefrom; a hollow feeding device located within said receptacle; and means for alternately moving the walls of said feeding device towaro and from said outlets.

el. In a device of the character described, a feed receptacle provided with outlets for the escape of feed therefrom; a hollow feeding device located within said receptacle, and having its walls movable by gravity andY by the weight of the feed in the receptacle, in a direction away from said openings; and means for moving the walls of said feedin0` device toward said openings.

5. In a device of the character described, a feed receptacle provided with delivery openings; a normally collapsed feeding device located within said receptacle; and means for utilizing the weight of the fowls feeding at the receptacle to expand said feeding device.

In a device of the character described, a feed receptacle provided with delivery openings; a collapsible feeding device located within said receptacle; and means for utilizing gravity and the weight of the feed on the one hand, and the weight of the fowls feeding at the receptacle on the other hand, to alternately collapse and expand said feeding device.

In a device of the character described, a feed receptacle provided with delivery openings; a hollow feeding device located in said receptacle adjacent said openings and formed of flexible material and normally held in a collapsed condition; and means for expanding said flexible device to force "feed out through said openings.

8. In a device of the character described, a feed receptacle provided with delivery openings; a hollow feeding device located in said receptacle adjacent said openings and formed of flexible material and normally held in a collapsed condition by gravity; and means for utilizing the weight of the fowls feeding at the receptacle to expand the feeding device.

3. In a device of the character described, a feed receptacle provided with delivery' o| eniugs at its bottom; a hollow feeding device formed of flexible material and larger a its bottom than at its top, said device being secured around its bottom to the bottom of the feed receptacle and closed at its top, and normally held in ar collapsed condition; and means for elevating the upper end of said flexible device to expand it to its full size.

10. In a device of the character described,

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a feed receptacle provided with delivery openings; a vertical barmovable up and down in said receptacle; a hollow feeding device formed of flexible material and larger at its bottom than at its top, said device being secured at its bottom to the bottom of the feed receptacle and at its top to said vertical bar at a point to permit said bar to move up and down; and means adapted to utilize the weight of the fowls feeding at the receptacle to move said vertical bar upwardly to elongate said flexible feeding device in an upward direction and thereby expand the same to force feed out through the delivery openings of the receptacle.

1l. A device of the character described, comprising an outer box adapted to rest on the ground, and having a bottom located above the ground at a point below the top of the box to leave the box open at the top; a feed receptacle mounted at the center of .said bottom and having delivery openings for the escape of feed from the receptacle out onto said bottom; a vertical bar having guided movement up and down in said receptacle and projecting through and below said bottom; a hollow feeding device in the receptacle formed of flexible material and tapering from its bottom to its top, said device being secured at its bottom to the bottom of the box and at its top to said vertical bar at a point to permit the bar to move to its upward position; and a treadle pivotally mounted on the outer box at a point between its bottom and the ground with the inner end of the treadle extending underneath the projecting lower edge of said vertical bar and its outer end projecting outwardly beyond the side of the outer box; whereby the downward movement of the outer end of the treadle when trodden upon by' the fowls feeding around the box, will elevate the inner end of the treadle to raise the vertical bar and expand the flexible feeding device, to force feed out through the delivery openings thereof.

12. In a device of the character described, a feed receptacle having delivery outlets for the feed; a pivoted treadle extending to the outside of the receptacle and adapted to move up and down; movable means within the receptacle and operated by said treadle for working the feed out through said outlets, said means being adapted to utilize the weight of the feed in the receptacle to retard the downward movement of the treadle.

In testimony whereof I aflix my signature in the presence of two witnesses.

FREDERICK EUKER.

VYitnesses HENRY F. GARDNER, WILLIAM P. BENNEDUM.

Copies of this patent may he obtained for ve cents each, by addressing the Commissioner uf Patents. Washington, D. C.

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